Elevator Injuries Cause Thousands of Deaths Each Year

Not many people realize that there are several thousand elevator deaths every year. Most happen on job sites.

Austin, TX (Law Firm Newswire) June 28, 2010 – “Just about anyone that has ever worked on a construction site realizes that accidents can and do happen, despite safety measures and other precautions. While most people figure the main reason for accidents is working with scaffolding or heavy, moving equipment, many of them don’t realize that construction site elevators are often the source of an injury,” recounted Brooks Schuelke, an Austin personal injury attorney with Perlmutter & Schuelke LLP.

Elevators on a work site definitely have their uses and are helpful for moving workers between floors or

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taking heavy equipment from one place to another without the hassle of using stairs. The problem is, elevators are places where a great many workers have sustained injuries while on the job. “If an onsite work injury is sustained, you may be able to claim workers’ compensation benefits or seek other remedies depending on the facts. However, not all claims go as they should and it’s a smart move to have the help of an experienced lawyer,” added Schuelke.

“Many of the accidents that we tend to see in practice related to working with elevators are falls, cuts, abrasions, lacerations, amputations, people trapped between the elevator and shaft wall, and doors opening onto an empty shaft. Other accidents happen during ascent, descent, stops or while accelerating,” he observed.

Getting hurt on the job often devastates those who were injured. The recovery time may be anywhere from weeks to years. “You may face astronomical medical bills, lose wages or your job, pay for therapy and medications, and never quite be the same again. While it helps to file a claim, in many instances there may be issues with that claim and they result in delays you can’t afford since you are injured,” commented Schuelke.

In addition to possible delays in dealing with claims, the whole process of filing a workplace injury claim is often not only complicated, but frustrating when all the worker wants to do is file a claim and get compensation for their injuries. “This is yet another reason why it’s a good idea to have an experienced lawyer help you. Workplace injuries have a way of becoming other things over time if they are not treated effectively and promptly,” said Schuelke.